Book Construction
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Book Construction These articles on various aspects of book design are intended to provide reliable guid- ance to anyone taking on the construction of a book that must conform to generally- accepted practice. Chapters and Subheads Chapter Titles Most nonfiction books are at least divided into chapters. Chapter lengths vary widely, and the goal of trying to keep chapters the same length may be elusive. The chapter is a convenient method of dividing material by subject matter, by chronology, or by any other means the author uses to construct his book. Chapter Format Both right-hand (recto) and left-hand (verso) opening pages are common, and double page (double truck) openings in which both pages are used as a spread, are also used. Normally the chapter opening page has a drop folio and no running head. Logically the first chapter in a book would start on a recto. The chapter opening page typically contains the chapter number and the chapter title. If they are used, a chapter © 2011 Joel Friedlander. All rights reserved. 1 subtitle or an epigraph may also appear, although it is important for all chapters to remain consistent. Use of Subheads The next logical way to divide the subject matter of a book is to subdivide the chap- ters, and this is accomplished with subheads. Subheads serve to guide the reader through the text, and to help cast light on the author’s way of thinking about her sub- ject. Try to avoid chapters with only one subhead, and remember to keep subheads, like chapter titles, consistent throughout the book. If more than one level of subheads is needed, each level will follow the guidelines for the initial level of subheads. For instance, try to avoid—unless necessitated by the material—having subsections with only one second-level subhead. Keep in mind that chapters do not need to have the same number of subheads, or the same levels of subheads, depending on the needs of the specific chapter’s material. Style of Subheads Subheads provide another way for the designer to help the author’s communication with the reader. Typographically subheads are distinct from the body text and appear on their own line, separate from the text. Each level of subheads receives a different typographic treatment to both signify the level of importance within the scope of the work and to help the reader differentiate the sections set apart by the author. Occasionally the lowest level subhead is run in at the beginning of a pragraph. In this case the typography will distinguish the subhead from the text by either italics, bold face, or both. The run in subhead is capitalized sentence style and punctuated as a sentence, with a period at the end. © 2011 Joel Friedlander. All rights reserved. 2 Scientific and Technical Books It is often the case that in scientific and technical works authors or publishers prefer to divide chapters with numbered sections rather than levels of subheads. Perhaps because of the technical nature of the content in these books, it seems easier for scien- tists and technical writers to cross-reference using numbers rather than textual names. Numbered chapter sections start over at 1 with each new chapter. Subsections are numbered with the appropriate section number as well as their own subsection num- ber. Each section or subsection number contains the complete “map” of the sections and subsections to which it belongs. Periods, hyphens or colons are used to separate the numbers. Other systems can also be used, as long as the system employed is consistent through- out the work. These same systems are used for reference to illustrations, charts, tables, and other non-text elements. Good Form Although you may be tempted, it’s considered bad form to refer directly to the sub- head as the text begins. The subhead and the text should each stand on their own without reference to each other. Text Breaks There are occasions when the author would like to have a break in the flow of the text, but doesn’t need to announce a new subject area, and has no need for a subhead. In these cases the book designer, with a type ornament and additional space between paragraphs, can create a text break. Using a row of asterisks is also common, and in some books just an extra line space is used. This method is unreliable, however, © 2011 Joel Friedlander. All rights reserved. 3 because it is very easy for a reader to miss the extra space if it falls at the bottom of a page. Typographic Interest Chapter opening pages and the treatment of text and subheads are the chief way the book designer influences the look and style of the book. Choices of typeface, spacing, decorative or illustrative material like drawing or photographs, type ornaments, and the layout of the chapter-opening pages themselves provide a counterpoint to the main text pages. Likewise, typographic styling of subheads helps provide color and rhythm to the page, while making the author’s communication more effective. Elements of the Book Page Running heads Running heads play an important role in orienting the reader within the book. Any material that takes up more than one page should have a running head. In books with long chapter titles it’s common to shorten the title to fit on one line along with a page number. In some cases running heads reflect the content of specific pages by using subheads as copy or another editorial scheme. If subheads are used as running heads, some pages will have more than one subhead on them. In this case, use the last subhead on the page as the running head if the page is a recto (right-hand page) and use the first subhead on the page if the page is a verso (left-hand page). Running heads are often omitted in novels, unless they are used specifically as a design element. They can be eliminated if they serve no particular purpose. When they are placed at the bottom of the page, they are called running feet. © 2011 Joel Friedlander. All rights reserved. 4 When Not to Use Running Heads Running heads are never used on display pages like the title, half title, chapter and part opening pages. They are not used on matter opening pages, like the first page of the Preface or the first page of the Contents. Running heads are also omitted on pages that have only an illustration or a table on them. On the other hand, if there is any text at all, even one line, then running heads should appear. If an entire section or run of pages contains only illustrations, running heads can be used to help orient the reader. Front Matter and Back Matter Like all other parts of the book, any particular element that is longer than one page should have running heads if they are used in the main body of the text. Ordinarily running heads in front matter use identical copy for both verso and recto pages. Running heads in the backmatter, however, are quite the opposite. For instance, in a book with several Appendices, use the Appendix number as the verso running head and the Appendix title on the recto. Likewise if the book has more than one Index, use the Index name in the running heads. In Notes sections, use the method employed in the text to decide how to organize the running heads. If notes are organized by page number, then the relevant page num- bers should be cited in the running heads. On the other hand, if the notes are orga- nized by chapter, use the chapter designations in the running heads. In all cases, running heads act as guideposts for the reader, and the reader’s ability to orient himself to part, chapter, page and topic are paramount in the use of running heads. © 2011 Joel Friedlander. All rights reserved. 5 Different Types of Running Heads There are many ways to use running heads, depending on the type of book and the organization of the material within it. For instance, any of these possibilities are acceptable: Verso = Part Name. Recto = Chapter Name. Verso = Chapter Name. Recto = Chapter Subtitle Verso = Chapter Name. Recto = Page Subhead. Verso = Page Subhead. Recto = Page Subhead. Verso = Author Name. Recto = Chapter Name. Page Numbers Page numbers, an intrinsic element of the book page, are covered extensively in the section on Pagination. Notes Notes become a page element when footnotes are used, either alone or in conjunction with endnotes. Endnotes appear at either the end of the chapter or in a Notes section in the back matter. When footnotes are used they are placed from the bottom of the text block and allowed to expand upward as necessary. Notes are sometimes separated from the main text block by a short rule at the left margin, but are often separated only by extra space inserted between the note and the last line of text. Very long footnotes may need to run over to the bottom of the succeeding page(s) as necessary, but every page in the work must have some text. © 2011 Joel Friedlander. All rights reserved. 6 Typically footnotes are set in a smaller type size than the main text block. Although there are various schemes for identifying and sequencing notes, if there is only one footnote on a page, only an asterisk is used to annotate the text and identify the footnote. Title Page Title page—Announces the title, subtitle, author and publisher of the book. Other information that may be found on the title page can include the publisher’s loca- tion, the year of publication, or descriptive text about the book.